Getting to Punta Mona

Punta Mona is located about 6 km south of the town of Manzanillo on the Southern Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica, or 10 km north of the small town of Gandoca.

Directions to Punta Mona from:

The San Jose Airport 

Pass through customs at the airport. Before you exit the building, look to your left. There is a small counter from the bank where you can change some money. The exchange rate is about 500 colones for the dollar. It would probably be good to change around $20 when you arrive for your travel expenses. We would not recommend changing more as there is a much better deal for money-changing in Puerto Viejo. 95 to 99% of businesses in Costa Rica accept dollars but not the bus station and maybe not cabs.

We suggest taking a cab from the airport to the bus station during the day, or if it is at night you should stay in San Jose and travel the next day. A good identifier of a legitimate cab is a red car with a yellow triangle on the side. Be wary of walking alone on the streets at night; San Jose can be unsafe and muggings and theft do happen.

Take a cab to the Gran Terminal del Caribe (The Caribbean bus terminal). It is recommended that you be careful with you while in the bus station. There have been some thefts there in the past. No one will hurt you but make sure you are always holding your bags securely. If you put them down for any reason, put the strap around your leg or arm. Have your money and passport and plane ticket securely put away in a money belt.

To get to our farm you need to take the bus from San Jose to Puerto Viejo then another one from to Puerto Viejo to Manzanillo.

San Jose to Puerto Viejo

There are buses to Puerto Viejo at 6 AM, 10 AM, 2 PM, and 4 PM. There is also a direct bus to Manzanillo at noon.

When you reach the station you need to go into the back of the building to buy your ticket. If you are looking at the building, there are all kinds of restaurants and food stands in front. If you walk over on the right-hand side past the food there is an entrance to the inside part of the station. Go in to your left. When you are inside, the ticket booths are on your right. There are different windows for different buses. You want the window that says SIXAOLA. At the window, ask for a ticket to Puerto Viejo. It costs about 3000 colones (about $6). Then you need to go to back outside where all of the buses are parked in order to get on the bus. There are benches in front where people wait before boarding. If you look up, all of the "tracks" are labeled with where their bus is going. Remember, you are looking for the bus to SIXAOLA. They usually start to board about 1/2 hour before departure. You will get an assigned seat on your ticket. They don't always enforce that, though. If you want to put a bag underneath the bus (which they will probably make you do if it is over a certain size) you just need to give it to them with 100 colones per bag (about 20 cents). They will give you a claim ticket and ask you where it is going (to Puerto Viejo).

The bus ride is about 4 1/2 hours. You will be going through Braullio Carillio National Park, which is the country's largest national park. It’s a gorgeous cloud forest so don't sleep through this part! Keep your eyes open for the gushing waterfalls and giant elephant ear plants. Then you'll be in the Atlantic Lowlands heading dueeast towards the port city of Limon . Usually they make a 15 to 20 min. pit stop in Limon. You can use the bathroom and buy snacks here. Take your carry-on bags with you and watch them. Then it is about another 1 1/2 to 2 hours due south along the Caribbean Sea (another time to keep your eyes opened!!) You will drive mostly along the main highway which is full of potholes! But the bus does pull into one other town along the way called Cahuita.
From Cahuita, it is about 20 more minutes until Puerto Viejo. You will pass the Black Sand Beach (Playa Negra) and then the bus will stop right near another beach and a covered bus stop. If you are not sure that you are in Puerto Viejo, just ask the bus driver or anyone around! Don't forget to get your bags from under the bus!

Puerto Viejo to Manzanillo

The buses from Puerto Viejo to Manzanillo are at 7 AM, 7:30 AM, 12 noon, 4:15 PM, and 7:30 PM. The bus ride is usually about 30 minutes. Taxis from Puerto Viejo are usually 5000 colones and take about 20 minutes. The boat will not leave after 4:00 PM, and guides will not hike you in after 3:30, so the last bus is impractical if you are hoping to get to Punta Mona the same day (you can always stay the night in Manzanillo, but there are cheaper places to stay and eat in Puerto Viejo).

The walk in is beautiful but not recommended to be done alone for the first time. It takes one and a half hours to three hours. Ask at Maxi's Restaurant or Aquamor Dive shop for someone to walk you in ($20 per person, regardless of how many people large your group may be). If you plan to walk be prepared with good footwear (I suggest tall socks and rubber boots or good hiking boots)- the trail can be extremely muddy. If you have too much luggage or would not like to walk, ask for Baco at Maxi`s Restaurant. He is our boat captain and he can take you out with your stuff to Punta Mona.The boat is $15 per person or or $45 for the ride if there are less than three people and takes about 20 minutes. The boat is $10 per person with anything over 6 people.

See you in Punta Mona!

From Sixaola

You can get to Punta Mona from Sixaola through either Puerto Viejo or Gandoca.

Through Puerto Viejo:

take a bus to either Puerto Limon or San Jose – the key here is to make sure that the bus goes through Puerto Viejo. Buses to Puerto Limon are $3 and leave at 5AM, 7AM, 8AM, 10AM, noon, 1PM, and 3PM. Buses to San Jose are $6 and leave at 6AM, 8AM, 9AM, 10:30AM, noon, 2PM, and 4PM. See directions above for once you get to Puerto.

Through Gandoca:

after arriving in Sixaola, you want to take a taxi to Gandoca. It should be around 10 USD, or 5,000 colones. From Gandoca Punta Mona is approximately a 40 to 60 minute walk along the beach to the north, depending on how quickly you walk. You can also walk on the jungle path a few feet into the jungle. You will know you’re at Punta Mona when you see Monkey Point, a little island a couple hundred feet off the shore, and our beautiful jungle houses…

From Panama

From Guabito

As Punta Mona is on the Carribean side of Costa Rica, the easiest way to get here is through Guabito (on the Panamanian side) and Sixaola (on the Costa Rican side). The border is open from 8AM to 6PM in Panama and 7AM to 5PM in Costa Rica (Panama is one hour ahead of Costa Rica). Make sure you get there with enough time to spare, because both sides close for lunch at about 1PM and you may have to wait for a while to be processed.. and Sixaola isn’t the most interesting place. Before crossing the bridge, stop at migracion (506 754 2044) Costa Rica to get your paperwork processed.

After arriving in Sixaola, you want to take a taxi to Gandoca. It should be around 10 USD, or 5,000 colones. From Gandoca Punta Mona is approximately a 40 to 60 minute walk along the beach to the north, depending on how quickly you walk. You can also walk on the jungle path a few feet into the jungle. You will know you’re at Punta Mona when you see Monkey Point, a little island a couple hundred feet off the shore, and our beautiful jungle houses…

see you in Punta Mona!!